Two vessel cord/SUA

Hi All

I had my 20 week ultrasound yesterday and the techician determined that the umbilical cord only has two vessels instead of the normal three, one vessel is a vein and the other an artery, which is sufficient enough to sustain a pregnancy, but not normal. My ob said that everything else was normal and that my baby (which we found out is a girl!) is thus far not affected by this and she is growing right on target. But he suggests that toward the latter part of my pregnany, at about 34 weeks, I should be monitored more closely and be seen every week to make sure that the baby is not in distress and is growing properly, and if not they need to induce me.

I came home and did some research and now I am concerned. There can be many problems associated with a two vessel cord pregnancy, such as kidney, heart, bladder, and neurological
abnormalities.

Needless to say I am an emotional wreck. My first two pregnancies went without problems and I was not prepared for this news. My ob is not concerned though, he said that I should not worry but that we need to be more watchful, but I think there should be further evaluation.

Do any of you have any information or experiences with this abnormality.

It's not terribly uncommon, and most times is just an incidental finding at delivery if not diagnosed prenatally. The good news is that apparently all other anatomy with your baby is normal, per your recent scan.

It can also sometimes be associated with IUGR as you get farther in your pregnancy, but your doctor is already planning on doing more surveillance as that time approaches.

I just wanted to let you know that my sister has the smartest baby that came from a 2-vessel cord. She had no clue what it meant and only found out now with her second pregnancy when the dr. mentioned it at a visit... Must not be as uncommon as we think. I'm sure you will be fine :)

I was so happy when they found 3 vessels regarding my "cord", I thought we are out of the woods! but we werent...and other people have had very normal, happy, healthy babies with two vessels, so I dont know how much to make of the 2 or 3 vessel subject. I think yours will be just a wierd anomally. Everything sounds normal and on target. Try not to worry, as hard as it is, and if I were you, I would try to avoid the internet about it. You may read things that are discouraging and stress you out, but go on to have a fabulously healthy baby.
In my case, 3 vessels did not mean a healthy baby and you have read here from posters, 2 vessels equaled a healthy baby. Good luck hun...

Thanks to all. Your comments really have helped to ease my worries. I did speak to the ob again, and went over all my concerns, and he has reassured me that everything is still okay and that I should go on as normal.

We give our all to our children, even when they are in the womb, and it is so hard to image that they may be suffering or not getting what they need, and that is my greatest concern. I will put my faith back into the pregnancy and hope for the best and wish you all the best in whatever your endeavor may be.

Just to try to offer you some comfort...my nephew (22 mos. old) only had a two vessel cord...and he is and has always been very healthy and just fine. Little "not normal" things like this happen all the time, without consequence. Try to focus on the fact that everything else looks good...and hope that this is just one of those unique little things about your pregnancy. When I was pregnant with my first son, they detected an enlarged left kidney, and it really worried me needlessly. He was checked after he was born, and it was nothing. I know this will not erase your anxiety...but I'm sure that your daughter will be just fine. Congratulations!! I'm having another boy!

Hello when I had my son one of the vessels fused together with another in the cord. He was perfectly fine with no problems. It is very possible that all 3 are there and that two just tangled up together which they won't know until they look at it after she is born. They did an ultrasound on my son when he was born to see if he had two kidneys. He did and then they examined the cord. Good luck to you and your baby!

I have had 4 Level 1's I go tomorrow for a level 2 I am really confused by all this and terrified, I am 34, 4th pregnancy, I have never heard of this before now, can anyone help me out? Blood tests wee negative and the ultrasounds are coming up ok I guess, they are just talking about the 2 vessel cord.

I am 19 years old and i am 38 weeks 4 days pregnant. I first got a screening test that indicated my daughter has 1/110 chance of having down syndrome. Then found out she had a bright spot in the heart and one vein and one artey in the umbilical cord. Also there is blood clots in the placenta with her. They did ultrasounds every week until i was 34 weeks along. My stomach is not measuring over 35 weeks along. So just remember some people even have it worse than you do. Good luck
Amanda

Hi. I am 37 years old and yesterday, at 20 weeks 6 days, I had my first ultrasound for my 2nd pregnancy. It was very exciting to learn that I was having a little boy because I already have a very precious 17 month old little girl. I was told that my little boy has a 2 vessel umbilical cord yet everything else with him was fine. However, I was told to come back in two weeks for another ultrasound. Initially I was very disturbed by this news. But then again I thought, if I spent my time worrying about it - it would only make me sad. And its really not good for my little toddler to see mommy sad. So I "womaned-up", continue to put my faith and trust in the Lord and felt assured that my life, my children's life are in his hand. So be encouraged to all those who have received this news or any news that may disturb you about your pregnancy. Have faith in God :)!
-loving mommyhood

I have been in and out of the hospital 4 times this month and at one of my visits the Doctors told me that my baby has a 2 vessel umbilical cord . Does anyone have any information about this subject . Please a very concerned Parent!

Hi yesterday I had my 20 week ultrasound and today i found out that my baby boy only has 2 vessels instead of three in the umbilical cord, and my dr. said that this is a sign of Down Syndrom (syndrome) but he also said that on my last visit i had some blood drawn out to check if my baby was in risk of down syndrom (syndrome) and it showed that it was extreamly low it was 1/2900 % that my child could have down syndrom (syndrome) he said not to worry that 2 vessles is very common and that MOST of the time woman deliver healthy babies and a healthy pregancy, he said not to worry but I'm just WORRIED as I've never been before!?

i just had my 19 week u/s scan yesterday, im almost 31 and the tech had brought in the radiologist who said after scanning the baby that there was a single umbilicle artery. my first reaction was asking her if the baby is getting enough food! she said 'not to worry' and my dr will go over everything with me. they also did very in depth scan of the baby in the u/s...getting shots like a close up of just the nose and the mouth, measuring out every single bone in the baby's body. we were there 2 hours. and then she said she could not locate the kidneys, but at the end of the scan the radiologist said that she found one and the other but they were very very small.
i spoke to my dr's asst and she said that they will be monitoring me closely through out my pregnancy. she also said i have to go for a level 2 u/s to verify that it is a single umbilicle artery and a better scan of the kidneys. during my first trimester i was in the hospital on an IV for throwing up and they took blood there, they said that my hcg levels were extremely high.
at that time the dr said because they were so high i was at a chance of a molar pregnancy, mulitple pregnancies and down syndrome....or the dr went on..it could mean nothing at all.
so last night i was putting this all together. and im freaked out. my husband said that was his worse day by far ..because he is soo upset at the u/s appt.

i do have a question though...if the cord is in fact just 2...does that increase your risk? or if it is 3 and the 2 cords are fused together...would that mean everythings fine?!?! ...i'm asking because of a previous poster on here's comment.

I just found out that my little guy has a single artery umbilical cord. I was completely unaware of this abnormality until today and I am in knots about the possible outcomes.
I am 21 weeks (today) and so far measuring right on track for 21 weeks. I had my Fetal Anatomy ultrasound a few weeks ago (which is when they discovered the SAU_ and as far as I know they saw no physical signs of deformity with the baby's organs. As well, in Canada, anyone over 30 is offered a nuchal translucency risk assessment where they use an ultrasound to measure the fluid at the base of the baby's neck combined with specific blood work to assess your risk for having a baby with Downs or Trisomy. My test came back "low risk" for my pregnancy.

So...I guess my concern is just the unknown. I feel very uninformed about SAU and feel like I should have been debriefed a little more in regards to the results of my most recent ultrasould. I would like to think that no news is good news...but when it comes to the health of the little boy growing inside of me....I want all the infomation they have about me. I am scheduled to go back for another ultrasound at 28 weeks but this feels like a long span of time to 'wait and see' what happens. I am petrified to learn (published studies) that there is a infant mortality rate of 20% for babies with SAU. I'm looking for some input from mom's who have delivered babies with SAU recently....their complications throughout their pregnancy and how they managed their stress as I want to enjoy this special time as much as possible but am afraid that my fears will take over.
thank you in advance

I also had a two vessel cord at my 20 week ultrasound. I was told this could be a sign of Down Syndrome. But, I was also told that the majority of children born from a two vessel cord are completely fine. My child was born with Down Syndrome (but, that's ok!!). He is 3 years old now. So, everything should be fine, however, I just wanted to let you know that if you do have a child with Down Syndrome, you will love it more than you could ever imagine. He is the love of our life. The most wonderful child(he is a bit stubborn), but completely wonderful in every way. I see no difference in him and my other children, he just learns a little slower...good luck.

Hi, I was diagnosed with a two vessel cord baby at my first ultrasound. I am at 32 weeks now. Being that I'm almost 35 and this is my fourth pregnancy, with only one live birth, my doctor is monitoring me closely. Starting at 32 weeks, I have an ultrasound every week (growth check every other week, but checking the fluid level and dopler of the cord every week) and fetal monitoring at the end of the week.

As for stress, all I can say is do whatever you need to get through. I have a great husband and mother to talk to and that helps. My last pregnancy had a cord abnormality also, and was at high risk for Down Syndrome. I didn't handle the stress well. I had lost two pregnancies before, and wasn't ready for another high risk one. I didn't sleep well, and and was an emotional shopper. However, everything turned out just fine. My daughter who is now 2 1/2 is perfectly healthy.

I guess just realizing that I have to go with whatever happens, and I cannot control the outcome has been hard to accept, and is a work in progress. This is my third cord problem pregnancy, all with different problems (what are the odds?).

Hang in there, and keep on searching for information and talking with your Dr.

when i was pregnant with my 8 month old. I found out i had a 2 vessel cord. i was monitored throughout my 4th month and 9 months by a specialist. I was kind of cool to get pics of my baby so often. everything was normal. as soon as i had her they did ultrasounds and xrays and tests on her to make sure she had no abnormalities with her organs. they found that her left kidney was in her pelvis. Recently, we found out her left kidney is in the pelvis and fused to the right. Thank God, they function properly and she has no diseases.

Everything may come up normal in the ultrasound but for me proved that they can't see/catch everything until the baby is born. Either way, our child was still healthy. Alll i can say is pray and remain positive, not matter what!

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